At the Adobe Max conference this week, the company announced a shift towards a subscription software model and also showcased new tools that will be useful for designers who still like working with physical tools.

(Credit: Adobe)

In its first foray into hardware, Adobe debuted a pen, dubbed Project Mighty, and digital ruler, called Project Napoleon. The Mighty is a pressure-sensitive stylus that Adobe hopes will "focus on the future of drawing", according to Michael Gough, Adobe's vice president of Experience Design. It works with tablets and connects to the Creative Cloud for integration with Kuler colour palettes and storing assets.

While many designers are used to traditional tablets and stylus devices, such as those made by Wacom, the Adobe solution works with an existing tablet — it was demoed on an iPad. As well as recognising touch from the pen itself, Adobe showed how users could rub out drawings with their hand.

The Napoleon ruler is Adobe's attempt to bring a touch of analog back to the digital world, emulating the feel of using physical drawing aids like set t-squares. On the ruler itself, there are a series of shapes. When touched, the Napoleon digitally projects the edge of that shape to help you draw.

The Mighty and Napoleon are not official products just yet, but according to TechCrunch, Adobe has committed to releasing them in the future.

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Lexy got her first taste of all things tech at an early age, playing long spells of Ski Free during the glory days of Windows 3.1. Originally from CNET's Sydney office, she now calls San Francisco home.
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